THE CANNY COOK: Lower your food bills and still eat well with food editor Eleanor Maidment

This week’s recipe was sent in by Bianca Davies of Cardiff, who writes: ‘Trying to eat healthily, stick to a budget and have at least one meal a week without meat, I incorporate this into my family’s menu and we all love it. It is refreshing, delicious, quick and great for summer evenings when we are short on time.’

It’s the perfect time of year to be making the most of our homegrown produce, too, and there are a couple of new cookbooks that I can’t stop dipping into for further inspiration.

Berber & Q: On Vegetables by Josh Katz (Kyle Books, £25*) provides a refreshing take on how to eat vegetables. It’s packed with interesting cooking techniques, full-flavoured dressings and novel ways to accessorise dishes. I have enjoyed the likes of blackened tomatoes on toast with ricotta and pistachio pesto, and big bold salads of roasted aubergine with marinated feta.

Also full of clever, colourful, well-balanced and plant-based recipes is Alice Hart’s The Magnificent Book of Vegetables (OH Editions, £26*). Organised by season, there are some fabulous recipes to enjoy over the coming months, including a beautiful lasagne stacked with Mediterranean vegetables and a trio of cheeses, plus simple courgette and sweetcorn fritters that make a lovely brunch to enjoy – hopefully – in the sunshine.

Orzo with cherry tomatoes, mint and feta cheese

FEEDS 4

TOTAL £5.91

METHOD

• Cook the orzo in a large saucepan of boiling salted water according to the packet instructions.

• Meanwhile, rinse the cherry tomatoes and cut in half. Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a large frying pan over a medium-high heat. Add the tomatoes, season then sauté for 4-5 minutes until softened.

• Drain the orzo and toss into the pan with the tomatoes. Take the pan off the heat and crumble the feta cheese, shred the mint leaves and add.

• Toss briefly to combine all the ingredients then serve immediately.

 NOTE: This cost assumes you already have some basic store-cupboard ingredients. 

  Do you have a great recipe for eating well and cutting food bills? Email editor@you.co.uk. If we print it here, we’ll send you a bottle of champagne